


Sins Of My Youth

by modxminty



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alec Lightwood Deserves Nice Things, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Asexual Raphael Santiago, Bullying, Caring Sebastian, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Good Parent Maryse Lightwood, Harry Potter References, Homophobic Language, Light Angst, Lydia Branwell & Alec Lightwood Friendship, M/M, Magnus Bane Is A Freewheeling Bisexual, Parabatai Feels, Protective Alec Lightwood, Protective Jace Wayland, Raphael Santiago Has Feelings, References to The Bane Chronicles, Slow Burn, Social Media, Sports, Supportive Isabelle Lightwood
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-08
Updated: 2018-05-23
Packaged: 2019-03-15 10:56:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 19,014
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13611894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/modxminty/pseuds/modxminty
Summary: When Brooklyn High gets shut down, Magnus Bane and his friends are forced to transfer to Idris Academy, a school full of stuck up, smart students. They easily work themselves into the friend group of their friend Clary, but when Izzy ropes Magnus into sitting with her through one of her brothers basketball practices, he may just find himself falling for the boy, which is incredibly inconvenient as he has a wonderful girlfriend that Magnus can't bring himself to hate, no matter how much he cares for Alec. He can only hope that he can push away the unwanted emotions before they cut a rift into his friendships.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to point any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can correct them.

The students of Idris Academy were exactly the way Magnus had expected them to be. Sure, he had a met a few of them before and had a couple of close friends that went there but they were never a shining example of how full of themselves the students really were. The moment he stepped foot in that school he knew he was going to have a serious problem with it. The first, and most prominent, reason was the school uniforms. They weren't awful, which is what Magnus hated the most about them. He managed to pull it off, as did, surprisingly, Simon and Raphael. At the end of the summer it was announced that Brooklyn High would be shutting down, leaving the students to transfer to schools in their immediate area. Magnus was one of the few unlucky ones who was put into Idris, the most well known and stuck up school in the city. He was sent off with a couple of friends, sure, but ever since the announcement he had been dreading going back to school. Simon and Maia had tried their hardest to stay optimistic but the closer to September they got the more they found themselves sucked into Magnus and Raphael’s gloom. 

Lucky for them, they had a friend in Idris. Clary Fray had been Simon's best friend since he was a child. She had been introduced to the rest of the group as they came along, Maia being the last of them to meet her. They all got along amazingly. It was shocking, really, that four Downworlders would get along so well with someone from Idris. Which brought along Magnus’s second point. Downworlders was what people from Idris commonly referred to the students of Brooklyn High as. It was their way of showing their superiority, in a way. The term was meant to degrade them, and for a while it did, before they decided they had had enough. The term was now something they used to refer to themselves, the Downworld soon becoming their own little name for themselves, effectively taking all the awful meaning out of it and stomping on it, making sure it never surfaced again. 

Idris Academy was known for its high levels of everything. Whether it be in sports, academics, the arts, you name it, Idris Academy would kick your high schools ass. There was no mistake in saying that Idris Academy was the best school students could go to. Giving Magnus even more of a reason to dread going. He had never really excelled in anything and the pressure of going to a school where all the students did exactly that was incredibly stressful. Magnus met with Maia to go to school that morning. Their first ever day at Idris. It was safe to say that both of them were terrified. Luckily, Clary had managed to talk the office staff into letting her be their mentor and guide on the first day given they were all in the same grade. They were meeting her there, along with Simon and Raphael. 

The moment they stepped through the front doors Magnus wanted to throw up. People immediately turned to stare at them as they walked into the building. They weren't the type of students you would expect to see at this school. Magnus with his high standing hair and colourful additions to his uniform, Simon with his soft demeanor and nerdy look, Raphael with his harsh gaze and angry stature, and Maia with her unruly curls and scarred neck. They made quite the group, anyone could tell you that. They were new. Out of place. Outcasts. Downworlders. 

The group wandered around the front area for a little bit. They were supposed to meet Clary in the common area, which she had described as a large open area outside that also happened to be in the middle of the school. So the floor plan was a little strange, Magnus could figure that out. That was something he could deal with. What he was finding it harder to deal with were the intense, unwanted stares aimed at them as they pushed their way through the door to the common area. Magnus was used to being stared at, he was unfairly handsome after all, but these were stares of a  different variety. These were ones of hostility, distaste, not admiration. 

“Simon! Magnus!” Came an excited shout from a nearby table. He turned his head to see Clary perched carefully on top of a table with a few other students he assumed to be her friends. She looked positively adorable in her uniform, the skirt clearly too long on her. He remembered her complaining about them not having her size in skirts and couldn't fight back the grin that spread across his face. 

“Clary!” Simon shouted back, rushing over and smothering her in a hug that Magnus was positive your average person would have hated. 

“Maia, Raphael, hey. Sorry, I didn't see you before.” Clary smiled at the other three as they walked over. Maia waved off her apology.  

Magnus bent over and pulled Clary into the biggest hug he could, rocking her back and forth slightly. Clary knew this type of hug. It was the Magnus is trying not to panic hug he often gave her in stressful situations. She hugged him tighter, feeling him take in a shaky breath before he pulled away, beaming down at her. “Hey, biscuit.” 

“Hey, Mags.” She smiled back. 

A snort from behind her caught both of their attentions. The noise came from a boy who looked to be about their age. He had blonde hair and blue eyes, although one of them appeared to be slightly brown as a well. He was wearing the standard uniform with the shirt hanging loose from his slacks, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and the collar undone. He had a mocking smirk on his face that seemed to stem from nothing, as if it were his natural expression. 

“Can I help you, Jace?” Clary asked. Jace, his name was Jace. Magnus would have to remember that. 

“Sorry, but your friend looks a little star struck over there.” He pointed towards Simon, who Magnus was just now noticing was being uncharacteristically quiet. He was staring over at a girl sitting next to Clary. She had slick black hair and warm brown eyes. 

“Right, I guess introductions are in order.” Clary said. “This is Magnus, Simon, Maia, and Raphael. They're some transfers from Brooklyn High.” She explained, pointing at each of them when their respective name was called. “This is Jace, Izzy, and Lydia.” 

He knew who Jace was, him being the only boy at the table. Izzy was referring to the girl Simon had been staring at. Her smile was warm and she wore her uniform with style, the entire ensemble seeming to compliment her style nicely. She had paired it off with heels, Magnus noticed. The other girl, Lydia, was quite different to Izzy, yet still similar. She was blonde, with soft brown eyes and a kind smile. He wore the uniform in the standard style and flashed him a grin when she caught him staring at her. 

Clary had gone through all the trouble of gathering information for the four of them. Included with their locker assignments and class schedules was a list she had written out for each of them of clubs and/or teams they should consider joining. It was incredibly thoughtful of her, Magnus decided. She knew of his love for school activities and had managed to include over thirty options for him. By the time the bell went he had been well introduced to Izzy, Jace, and Lydia. They parted with the promise of an introduction to the remaining member of their group who had had a last minute meeting with his boss that morning that ended only a few minutes before classes started, meaning he had no time to meet them. Magnus also noticed a strange absence of Jonathan, Clary's older brother, who he had assumed would be there as well. Perhaps he'd see him at lunch, Magnus thought, as he let Clary and Lydia drag him off to his first class at Idris Academy. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus learns a little bit more about the remaining member of their group

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling erros in the comments below so I can fix them.

Magnus chatted back and forth with the girls for most of their English class, stopping only when the teacher would send them glares. The conversation would inevitably start up again after a couple minutes anyways. Lydia wanted to know everything she could about Magnus, asking him questions about everything and anything. In just an hour he had relayed to her most of his early childhood, minimal information about all of his friends, his favourite foods, colours, activities, and books, how he met Clary, information about his family, and stories from all of his travels. It turned out they both quite liked the adventure that came with traveling. They quickly bonded over that and Magnus found that he quite liked Lydia. With more time he was positive they would end up as a close friends. 

The first two weeks had been a blur for him. Classes bad been going fine, his home life had been fine, everything with his friends had been fine. He'd joined Lydia on the yearbook team and often found himself wandering with her at lunch to take pictures or spending his time talking fashion with Izzy. Everything was good, better than he'd expected really. There was the small downside where he still hadn't met the mysterious fifth member of their little group, but that was okay. Apparently he had managed to get spares first period for the entire semester and managed to pick up morning shifts for work. Where he spent his lunches, Magnus didn't know. Izzy promised him he'd meet him eventually but honestly, he didn't really care. He was perfectly content with the small group they'd assembled. 

When lunch arrived Izzy and Magnus immediately launched into a mini study, retelling their friends something that had been said in their psychology course that morning. Their teacher had offhandedly mentioned that a person's lockscreen picture could tell you more about them and their values than you could probably ever get them to say out loud before launching into a huge lecture on how technology is a huge tool in learning about people and that a lot of people overshare online. He had tuned it out after the first couple of minutes. Now, however, the pair brought it up, asking the group about their lockscreen photos and passing their phones around the table to show them off.

Simon had his set as a picture he'd taken of Clary in an old bookstore, carefully browsing the shelves, Magnus and Maia laughing in the background. Raphael had his as a picture of Magnus and Simon passed out in uncomfortable positions on his couch. He found it quite flattering that he'd made it onto his phone. Clary had hers as a snapchat of Jace, Simon, and Jonathan, the words ‘my boys’ with a heart emoji printed across it. Maia had a picture of an old motorcycle she claimed didn't belong to her. Lydia had a picture of her dog, a boy he didn't recognize sleeping shirtless in the background, his face covered by the animal. Magnus assumed it was either a boyfriend or family member. He didn't ask. Jace wouldn't hand his over to show them but when he got a text from someone Magnus could briefly see a picture of him and Clary before he pulled it off the table. Magnus’s own background was a photo of Raphael cuddling his cat. A photo which Raphael himself hated, claiming that it was an inaccurate representation of him and that he actually hated Magnus's cat. Magnus didn't believe him. He knew that deep down Raphael actually adored Chairman. 

Izzy passed hers over, showing Magnus a photo of her and a boy he didn't recognize. He was lifting her, her legs bent up behind her with her arms wrapped around his neck and a large grin on her face, a matching one on the boys. He appeared to be wearing a uniform of some kind. 

“Who is that?” He asked, sliding the phone back to her. 

She grinned. “My brother, Alec. The one you've been meaning to meet for the past two weeks.” 

“Ah,” Magnus hummed. “The mysterious fifth member.” 

“You should come meet him!” She smiled, grabbing onto his arm. 

He laughed. “I'd love to, but I'm afraid I have no idea who he is or how to find him.” 

“Come with me to his basketball practice this afternoon,” she suggested. “I don't usually sit through them but Jace is refusing to give me a ride so he's stuck as my only option.” 

“Well, in that case, I'd be honoured.” He smiled. 

Izzy grinned brightly at him, wrapping him in a tight side hug. “Good! I'm sure you'll love him!” 

And that was how Magnus found himself in the school gym half an hour after school ended, chatting aimlessly with Izzy in the bleachers as they paid little to no attention to the practice going on around them. They took ridiculous Snapchat selfies to waste time, watching over Simon's videos of him practicing with his band as he posted them. Neither even noticed the coach call a fifteen minute break until someone was running towards them. He looked up, watching as a what could quite possibly be the most beautiful boy he'd ever seen bounded up the stairs or the bleachers, stopping at the railing in front of them. 

“Izzy.” He smiled, moving to put his arm around her when she scooted away. 

“Ew, no, you're sweaty.” She stood up, gesturing enthusiastically to Magnus. “This is the guy I told you about, Magnus.” He stood up quickly beside her, flashing the boy a bright smile. 

He looked at him, eyes scanning over his body. Magnus shifted uncomfortably under his gaze before he finally looked him in the eye. He held out his hand, keeping eye contact with him. “Alec.” 

“It's nice to finally meet you,” Magnus smiled, taking the offered hand. “Izzy has told me oh so much about you.” He cast his gaze sideways at Izzy who shifted away. 

“She hasn't told me much about you, either.” Alec said, clearly knowing what Magnus’s words meant. He smiled, his grin almost knocking Magnus off his feet. 

“Yes, well, luckily for you, Lydia has given you the highest praises. I can only hope you'll live up to them.” He said, finally dropping the others hand. 

He seemed to perk up at the mention of the blonde. “Lydia?” He asked, smiling brightly.

“Indeed. You know her quite well, one may assume?” 

“Yeah, of course,” Alec said. “I mean, she's my girlfriend.” 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, another super short chapter. I'm super sorry. I'm gonna aim for weekly updates on this although I'm already not doing too well but I promise to do my best. 
> 
> Drop me a comment and tell me your opinions!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everybody knows each other for some reason

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

Of course he had a girlfriend. Of course. Alec Lightwood was the picture perfect high school boy. He was tall, beautiful, athletic, rich, and from the minimal amount Izzy had told him, incredibly smart. He was also deathly protective, it seemed, as he watched him stare down the boys on the team who look at Izzy. He was perfect. Magnus couldn't detect a single flaw on his face, his body being an entirely different masterpiece. It was no wonder he had a girlfriend, an equally perfect girlfriend. Honestly, the jock and the cheerleader. They were a high school cliche and Magnus wanted to slap himself for even momentarily thinking that he had a right to look at this beautiful stranger like he did. 

“Oh, he said. “She never mentioned that to me.” 

He rubbed at the back of his neck and Magnus felt as though he might pass out right there on the spot, watching the way his muscles moved in his jersey. His sleeveless jersey, Magnus was just now noticing. “Yeah, we don't really talk about it. We're not, you know, like official yet.” 

“Ah, taking things slow. I understand.” Magnus smiled, fiddling slightly with the rings on his fingers. 

The harsh blow of the whistle sounded, reminding the boys that they a minute left to finish up what they were doing and get back on the court. Izzy turned around, fishing through her bag before she found what she was looking for, handing her brother a water bottle. He took It gratefully and Magnus would be lying if he said he didn't stare at his neck as he snapped the bottle open, chugging all the water in the plastic. He pulled the bottle away, wiping a little bit that leaked out of the corner of his mouth, and Magnus was about ready to throw himself off of the bleachers and accept death right there. 

Alec smiled at the two, turning and running down the steps of the bleachers. 

“Play safe!” Izzy called after him and he turned, smiling at her. 

He jogged his way to the centre of the court, calling back to Izzy. “Don't forget your notes!” He then turned around and sprinted back to the court. 

“Shit.” Izzy mumbled, clearly remembering that she forgot her notes. 

Magnus laughed, patting her on her knee. “Go, I'll watch your stuff." He jutted his thumb towards the door and she smiled thankfully, slipping past him and heading for the doors. 

The practice wasn't interesting Magnus. He had only gone to meet Alec, which had turned out just as well as Magnus originally suspected. He was his exact dream guy, waving Magnus to suffer the more he thought about it. With Izzy temporarily gone and the practice being about as engaging to him as watching paint dry, he turned to his friends as comfort.

 

**Teenage Suffering**

 

**baneofyourexistence:** so turns out Izzy’s brother is hot 

**santiagno:** And this is an issue how?

**baneofyourexistence:** he's straight 

**claryon:** oof

**claryon:** that's rough buddy 

**baneofyourexistence:** he's literally perfect I 

**baneofyourexistence:** don't??? Understand???? 

**simonsays:** how do you know he's straight 

**baneofyourexistence:** he's dating Lydia 

**claryon:** oh shit really 

**baneofyourexistence:** yeah 

**maiamia:** I can see them being a power couple  

**simonsays:** yeah me too 

**claryon:** same here tbh 

**jonathot:** what's this I hear about a hot guy 

**simonsays:** and his username rings true once again 

**baneofyourexistence:** silence Sherwin 

**simonsays:** Simon 

**baneofyourexistence:** nobody cares Samantha 

**santiagno:** so Magnus has a crush on a straight guy he barely knows 

**santiagno:** is this supposed to be surprising

**baneofyourexistence:** don't call me out like this oh my god 

**maiamia:** you know he's not wrong 

**baneofyourexistence:** okay you know what Maia 

 

“I thought I sensed some teenage suffering in here.” 

Magnus looked up quickly at the sound of the voice, his eyes falling on the blonde walking towards him, ever present smirk on his face. 

“Do you have a Magnus-Is-Having-A-Moment sensor or something?” he asked, smiling at the brit as he plopped down beside him. 

“Call it instinct,” he smiled lightly and Magnus smiled back. He fished around in his pocket, holding out a coin. “Penny for your thoughts?”

It was something dumb they had been doing since they were kids. If you could tell someone needed to talk about something, you'd offer them a penny. 

Magnus took the coin. “This is a quarter.” 

“I know, but quarter for your thoughts doesn't have the same ring to it, now does it?” he said. 

Magnus sighed, leaning back on the row of seats behind him. “I'm good, just picked another wrong guy.” 

“Well, we all tend to do that sometimes,” he smiled. “I didn't realize you knew the Lightwoods.” 

He shrugged. “I met them a couple weeks ago. Which you would know if you ever bothered to come speak to us.” 

Jonathan made a slightly pained noise that was quickly followed by a laugh. “I suppose you're right.” 

“I'm always right.” He said simply. 

“Well,” Jonathan said. “Not always. I've seen you make your fair share of incorrect decisions.” 

Magnus laughed, knocking his shoulder into the older boys as memories of the mentioned decisions played back in his head. “What are you doing here so late anyways?” 

“Clary asked me to come pick her up after she finished with some art thing, but it was running late. I figured there might be something going on out here so I came out here to watch and wait. I wasn't planning on seeing you, honest.” He shrugged, pulling on the sleeves of his sweater slightly. 

Clary and Jonathan had an odd relationship. They were almost completely opposite in how they operated. Clary had abandoned her last name when their father died, instead choosing to switch back to Fray along with her mother, but Jonathan held onto the Morgenstern name, refusing to abandon the little bit of himself that belonged entirely to the father he admired so vastly. His looks were all from his father as well, Clary getting everything from her mother. Even his accent put him off from his sister. Magnus still didn't understand how only one of them had inherited the accents of their parents, but he blamed it on the fact that Valentine had always had the stronger accent and Jonathan had always spent much more time with him than his mother, while Clary opted to stick with her. When Valentine had died, Jonathan became steadily protective over Clary. He assumed all the roles in her life that would naturally be taken by their father, eventually passing some of those responsibilities onto their stepfather Luke. Jonathan loved his sister, no questions asked, and some days it seemed like Clary adored him just as much, while others she seemed to hate him with every fiber of her being. Magnus didn't know if that was just a regular sibling thing, but judging by the way he saw his other friends interact with their siblings, it didn't seem to be. 

Jonathan had also become quite protective of Clary's friends, no matter how well they could hold their own. Everyone had a place in the Fray household, no matter who you were. Any friend of either of their children was immediately accepted into the family by Jocelyn and Luke, their house often serving as a common ground between all of them, a home away from home one might say. Luke had practically adopted Maia, loving her like she was blood. For all any of them knew, she could be. They looked enough alike that if Magnus didn't know them, he'd have no doubts about her being his biological daughter. It was an odd little system they ran, but it worked perfectly. 

“Hey, sorry that took so long I- Sebastian.” Izzy’s voice suddenly sounded from behind them. Magnus turned in his seat to look at her, his eyes skipping between Jonathan and Izzy as they stared at each other. “What are you doing here?” 

“I noticed Magnus was here and came to talk to him. I hope that's all right.” He defended himself. 

“No, that's, that perfectly okay. I was just, surprised, is all.” 

Magnus looked between them again in confusion. Did they know each other? Before he had a chance to ask Jonathan got up. “I suppose I should get going. I'll see you around, Mag, and I promise I'll actually make an effort this time.” He smiled, ruffling Magnus's hair affectionately before he walked off.

“How do you know Sebastian Morgenstern?” Izzy asked as soon as he was out of earshot. 

Magnus blinked at her. “He's Clary's brother?”

“Seriously?” She asked, surprise clear on her face. When Magnus nodded her eyes widened, her hand reaching up and pushing her hair out of her face. “Shit, wow. I feel awful for her.” 

“Why?” he asked, cocking his head in question.

“Look, you don't know him, Magnus. You don't know what he's like.” She said. 

He let out a sharp laugh. “Oh, I don't know him? Isabelle, I've known him since I was twelve. I can promise you he's not the monster you seem to have him made out to be.” 

“Just,” she sighed, reaching out and grabbing his hand. “Be careful around him, okay? I don't wanna see you get hurt.” 

He smiled at her, patting her knee lovingly. “I can assure you, Isabelle, any damage he wanted to do to me would have been done when I was much younger. I'm perfectly safe with him.” 

Another sharp blow of the coaches whistle startled them, Magnus jumping at the sudden sound. Izzy laughed and he flipped her off, watching as the team huddled around the coach for a minute before jogging off towards the change rooms. Izzy moved to the railing, leaning over to catch her brother attention. He looked up at her, smiling and hanging towards the back of the line, letting his teammates pass before he grabbed the railing, hooking his foot under one of the bars and pulling himself up so he was face to face with his sister, his body just barely supported on the ledge. 

“You did great today, Alec.” Izzy praised despite the fact that she hasn't paid attention to anything that happened. Alec seemed ignorant to this fact, grinning widely at her and Magnus felt his heart jump a little at how purely beautiful he was. “Now go get changed, we've got work to do.” 

He rolled his eyes, moving to jump down when his eyes caught Magnus’s and he pulled himself back up. “We can give you a ride, if you don't have one.” 

“I'd love that.” Magnus smiled.

Alec smiled back, opening his mouth to speak when the whistle blew behind him, startling him enough that he almost lost his footing, Izzy grabbing his arm for extra support as he righted himself. “Lightwood, get down before you hurt yourself and get changed. I've got places to be, we need this gym empty.” 

He rolled his eyes, grabbing and bars again and hopping down, catching himself on the bars before he could hit the ground and lowering himself gently as to avoid injuring himself. He smiled up at Izzy once more before ducking into the changing room, nearly colliding with one of his teammates who was exiting. He clapped him on the back, flashing him a grin before he moved out and the door swung closed. 

He looked down at his phone for the time, trying desperately to avoid looking at the text notifications and failing miserably, giving in and opening his group chat again. 

 

**Teenage Suffering**

 

**claryon:** eifhnskbsghsko 

**simonsays:** everything good down there Fray?

**simonsays:** Clary??? 

**simonsays:** hello?????

**maiamia:** she got her phone taken away for texting 

**santiagno:** then why are you on yours 

**maiamia:** I haven't been caught yet ;)

**baneofyourexistence:** can you all please shut up?

 

He looked up from his phone again at the sound of approaching footsteps, watching as Alec walked towards them somehow looking more attractive than he had when Magnus first saw him. He personally ruled jeans and a t-shirt as an unacceptable outfit, but somehow this boy pulled it off better than he had ever seen someone do before. He plopped his bag down on the bench next to Izzy’s, unzipping it and pulling out a jacket, the distinct black and gold giving it away to be a varsity jacket. He slipped it on, the gold sleeves, collar, and logo the only colour on his otherwise monochrome form, save for his startlingly blue eyes. 

He pulled his bag over his shoulder and Izzy did the same, his eyes fixed on Magnus as he snapped out of his thoughts, causing him to jam his phone into his pocket as he jumped up and swung his own bag over his shoulder, walking with the pair out to Alec's truck. It surprised Magnus that someone with as much money and status as he had would have such a beat up looking vehicle, but he didn't question it, knowing that there was probably a reason he opted for such instead of a sleek, expensive car like Jace. The drive was mostly quiet for him. He listened to the siblings talk, occasionally popping up in the conversation when he had something he felt he needed to add or question or rattling off a direction every once in a while. 

Soon enough they pulled up in front of Magnus’s house. He thanked the siblings, opening the door and swinging his body out. He walked past the drivers door, making his way up the path when said door opened, Alec grabbing his arm before he could get out of range. 

Magnus looked at him, his forehead creasing in confusion and Alec flushed, rubbing at the back of his neck. “Sorry. I was just, uh, just wondering if I could get your number? You know so we can like, text and stuff.” 

“Of course,” he smiled. “Just pass me your phone.” 

Alec pushed it out of his pocket, holding it out for the other to take. He typed his number in quickly, sending himself a quick text so that he'd have the others number as well. He handed the phone back when he felt his own vibrate against his thigh. 

“I'll see you later, Alexander.” He smiled, giving Izzy a mock salute before he jogged up the path, unlocking his front door and slipping inside. He heard the sound of the truck pulling out of his driveway and leaned heavily against his door, smile still plastered stupidly on his face. Alexander Lightwood was going to be the death of him, he could feel it. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally, a decent chapter length. This is coming out early as I was hit with sudden inspiration and finished it faster than I thought I would. I hope you enjoyed. 
> 
> Leave me a comment with your thoughts if you'd like, I love to read them.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus is whipped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

Alec had turned out to be one of the kindest people Magnus would ever find himself interacting with. He didn't text him right away after getting his number. He planned on either waiting for Alec to text him first or give it a day before he tried. He went through his small routine. He read for a bit, sat down for dinner with his mother, showered, changed, read some more, and started on his schoolwork. Really, Alec could have texted him at any time and he probably wouldn't have noticed. It wasn't until one in the morning, completely fed up with the schoolwork he still wasn't getting done, that he picked up his phone, shooting a text off to his newfound friend. 

 

**Magnus:** how are you with calculus 

 

He didn't expect a response, it was late after all, but his phone quickly buzzed with a new text from Alec. 

 

**Alec Lightwood:** pretty good, what's up?

 

And that was how it started. They had been texting almost non-stop for a week since, both easily slipping into conversation with the other. Magnus sent him awful photos he took of Izzy in class and Alec would send him photos of the neighborhood cats he saw on his morning jogs. Really good photos, in fact. He had told Magnus that he wanted to be a photographer, and Magnus responded by telling him that he had to take the photo for the cover of Magnus’s first book. They had an odd little friendship going, texting each other whenever they could, Alec patting him on the back when he saw him in the hallway, smiling at each other across the common area at lunch when Alec sat with his team instead of his friends. It was good, peaceful. Magnus hated it. 

The more time he spent talking with Alec the more he could himself falling into the deep hole he had dug himself when he saw him for the first time. Every time he was almost to the top of the pit, Alec would tell him a joke or a story, flash him one of those smiles, and he'd fall in again, the pit suddenly deeper than it had been before. He was crushing. Big time. Raphael had instantly noticed, teasing him endlessly about it, using the information to his advantage. Simon found out shortly after, followed by Maia. The two of them weren't as bad, but they still teased him. The information eventually made its way to their group chat, meaning Clary and Jonathan both also possessed it. The five of them combined were awful, the teasing and jokes never ended. 

Their group seemed to have completely solidified. The group, with the exception of Alec, spent the morning together, seeing everyone but Jonathan and Alec in at least one class of the day. The Lightwoods were starting to warm up to Jonathan and he slowly made himself a part of the group. They'd claimed a table as theirs for lunches, Alec alternating between sitting with them and with his team. It was good, everything was going good. And then Magnus met Will. He played on the basketball team with Alec, and just so happened to be Jace's cousin. They were paired together on an assignment and quickly became friends. Will introduced Magnus to his boyfriend, Jem, who Magnus also quickly hit it off with. Through them he met Tessa, one of the kindest and smartest individuals Magnus would ever have the pleasure of knowing. The addition of these three new friends made Magnus’s life all the more interesting. It was good, he liked the system. He liked his friends, he liked his life. 

“I'm gonna marry the fuck out of Clary,” were the first words to come out of Jace's mouth when he sat down on Tuesday morning. 

Izzy looked up at him, momentarily taking her attention away from where she had been painting Magnus’s nails. “What brought this on?” 

“She's just so, so, ugh,” he put his head in his hands, screaming muffledly into them. “I love her so much.” 

“Are we talking about Clary?” Lydia asked, slipping into the seat next to Izzy and smiling at her before the latter turned back to where she was working on Magnus’s nails. Lydia, ever the morning person, looked flawless for someone awake at eight AM. She had her hair and makeup done perfectly, a happy grin on her face, but there was one thing that Magnus couldn't deny made him feel slightly ill. She was wearing Alec's jacket. It was nearly three sizes too big on her and the large printing of ‘Lightwood’ across the back clearly gave away who's it was. He knew it was a normal, boyfriend like thing to lend your girlfriend your jacket, but he couldn't deny that it put him off.

“Is that my brothers jacket?” Izzy asked, not taking her eyes away from her task. 

Lydia nodded, her smile growing slightly. “Yeah. He noticed I'm not feeling well so he told me to wear it for the day so I wouldn't get cold. He said it was the best option cause it's a school jacket so it doesn't break uniform.”

“Dude,” Jace said, his eyes wide. “Alec never lets anybody wear his jacket. Not even Izzy. You must be super special or something.” 

She shrugged, rolling the sleeves slightly so they'd fit her arms and Magnus fought down the jealousy that was crawling up his chest. He was quickly distracted by Izzy patting him lovingly on the cheek and telling him she'd finished with his nails. He looked down, smiling in satisfaction with how they looked. 

Lydia peeked over Izzy’s shoulder and smiled. “They look amazing, I love the colour. You've gotta do mine some time Iz.” 

“Yeah, totally.” Izzy smiled. Magnus felt his own small smile grow faintly as he watched the pair. It didn't matter what was going on in his own life, watching his friends talk and smile with each other filled his heart with happiness til he feared it may burst. 

The bell broke them out of their moment, the group quickly moving to scatter to their various classes and wishing each other well for the day. That was another thing Magnus liked about these people. They all cared about each other wholeheartedly. It was refreshing to see, especially amongst so many harsh people in a school like Idris, and Magnus found himself smiling as he walked to his first class. 

 

-

“God damnit.” Magnus cursed, throwing his pencil down on his desk again. He had been trying hopelessly to finish this math work for the past hour, furiously texting Alec about how impossible it was and how he'd never understand how he took all AP classes while Alec tried his best to help him. He sighed, running his hands violently through his hair. He was going to throw himself out his window before he got through half of the problems on his sheet. He reached for his pencil, about to start again, when he heard a faint tapping behind him. 

He turned in his chair to face the window, listening as the tapping got louder. It was a soft, sparraric patter that got louder and softer with every tap, the spaces between the taps uneven. He stood up, inching his way towards the window and pulling the curtain open. He didn't see anything outside immediately and the tapping continued. He pulled the window open only to get hit in the forehead with a small rock. Somebody was throwing rocks at his window. He leaned over the ledge slightly, looking down and seeing the grinning face of the one and only Alexander Lightwood. 

“What the hell are you doing?” he called down, careful not to wake his mother.

Alec made a motion for him to come downstairs, grinning up at him. Magnus shook his head and Alec looked at him again, a cocky smirk on his face. He looked at him, all messy hair and a grin throwing rocks at his window at one in the morning. Magnus had knows this boy for a week, just seven days, but already he was turning his heart into mush. Magnus sighed, holding up a finger in motion to say he'd be right down. Alec's smile grew and Magnus shut the window on him, trying his hardest not to scream or faint. He quickly threw on some shows and a sweater, not at all caring that he was still wearing his pyjama pants, and shoved his phone into his pants pocket. He closed the door to his room as softly as possible and ran down the stairs, grabbing his spare set of keys off their hook before he slipped outside, locking the door behind him. 

He turned around, coming face to face with a still grinning Alec. 

“Hey.” He greeted him, smile growing impossibly more. 

“Are you insane?” Magnus replied, his voice low. “Where the fuck did you even get my address?” 

Alec winked, fucking winked, before he replied. “It's a secret.” 

Magnus sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Why are you here, Alexander?” 

He could see Alec stiffen slightly at the use of his full name and he momentarily panicked, worried he'd overstepped his boundaries. But Alec smiled his beautiful, blinding smile and he could feel the worry he'd built up seep out into the cool night air. 

“I figured you could use a break,” he shrugged. “So I stopped by to give you one.” 

“What are you suggesting?” he asked, a smile growing on his face. 

“Twenty four hour ice cream?” Alec suggested. 

Magnus grinned. “Just what I needed.” 

And that was how Magnus found himself sitting in a twenty four hour ice cream parlour, a cone of mint chocolate chip in his hand as he talked back and forth with Alec, who had his own cookies and cream cone, at two in the morning. The workers looked dead on their feet and seemed incredibly unimpressed by the teenagers walking in at such an early hour. The pair talked about everything, from Alec's siblings to Magnus’s world travels. He let Alec across through his Instagram and point out photos he wanted to know more about, smiling when Magnus told his certain stories. 

“What about this one?” he asked, opening a photo from Magnus’s trip to Peru the previous year. It was of him and his two closest friends, Catarina and Ragnor, smiling outside of an old temple they were later accused of desecrating. 

“Ah,” Magnus hummed, smiling fondly at the memory. “Peru. We decided to adventure to an old temple and were later banned from ever going to the site again. We never did learn why.” 

Alec laughed, swiping back to his profile. He scrolled up and big and quickly clicked on another post, this time a set of two photos. “And this one?” 

This one was also from Peru, although it was from that year instead of one previous. The first photo was the typical touristy photo one would take in a foreign place. He was standing in the streets of an old town, his arm linked with a girl, red hair spilling out from under a straw hat. Both were grinning like idiots, the sure smiles of people who knew something someone else didn't. The second photo was of the two of them running, hands linked and massive smiles on their faces. Magnus’s coat swirled out behind them and the girls hat was in the middle of falling off, but both looked incredibly happy. 

He smiled, remembering that day clearly. “Peru again, this summer. My ex girlfriend, Kitty, that's the day I met her. She was quite the marvel. Stole the watch of the man who took the photos for us.” 

“Where is she now?” Alec asked. 

Magnus shrugged. “Who knows. She was never one to stay in one place for long.” 

It was at that point that both boys had finished their ice cream, pocketing their phones and walking out of the shop, much to the obvious relief of the employees. They walked the streets for a little bit, a decent ways away from Magnus’s house. Alec had taken some impromptu photos of him outside an old bookstore, saying “for your Instagram” when Magnus asked why. In the middle of the small photo shoot, Magnus found himself shivering. He cursed himself for not putting on a jacket, but he hasn't known he would be outside for so long. 

“You cold?” Alec asked, moving his eyes away from his camera for a minute. 

Magnus shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he continued to shiver. “A little. It's okay though.” 

Alec smiled fondly at him, slipping his own jacket off and tossing it at Magnus, who had barely pulled his hands out of his pockets fast enough to catch it. “Take this.” Magnus continued to stare at him and Alec laughed. “Come on, put it on. You look like you're freezing.” 

Magnus slipped his arms through the sleeves, smiling contentedly at the slightly large fit as he pulled it around himself. He heard the distinct click of Alec taking another photo and looked up. “I thought you were done.” 

Alec grinned. “Just one more.” 

Alec walked Magnus back to his door, bidding him goodnight and telling him to return his jacket the next morning.

Magnus gave him a tired smile. “Thank you, Alexander. I had a lovely time. That was just what I needed.”

Alec smiled as he unlocked the door, saying goodnight once more and making sure Magnus had safely made it onto his house before he even dared walk away. Once back in his room Magnus collapsed into bed, not bothering to go back to the work he was failing to do or even to take off Alec's jacket. He stared at his ceiling, smiling as he remembered Jace's words from earlier.

_ “Alec never lets anybody wear his jacket. Not even Izzy. You must be super special or something.” _

He finally fell asleep around four o'clock, still smiling to himself and wearing Alec's jacket. If both boys were incredibly exhausted the next day, well, it was completely worth it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof this chapter is late but who cares right. The boiys are finally hanging out without their friends, what an accomplishment. Magnus is honestly me studying for my science test tonight though. 
> 
> Leave me your opinions in the comments!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something's wrong with Alec

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

In the month and a half Magnus had known Alexander Lightwood he had never once lied to him. Alec had a lot on his plate, Magnus found that out quickly, but he always told him what was wrong when he was asked. Alec wasn't a lair, that was something else his friend quickly learned. He always told Izzy where he was when he didn't come home on time, always told his parents where he was, didn't keep secrets from his friends unless it was to make something even better for them. He told his girlfriend who he was with and what they were doing. He had even told them the story of how he almost hooked up with a drunk girl outside of a seedy bar while holding her hand, and she was laughing right along. Alec Lightwood was an honest man. So, when he started talking less and less about what was going on in his life, Magnus was rightfully concerned. He made a couple inquiries into what was going on with him, but he never opened up, not this time. By the fourth week of this, he felt about ready to snap. 

“What's up with Alec?” Clary asked, sitting down next to Magnus. 

“I wish I knew,” Izzy sighed, pushing her hair out of her face. “He's been like this for days.” 

“What's wrong with Alexander?” Magnus asked. 

“He isn't sleeping or eating. He came home yesterday and fell asleep on the couch almost immediately, completely slept through dinner, and then when he woke up he wouldn't eat anything, just locked himself in his room. His light was still on at five this morning.” She explained. 

Magnus felt a stab of sadness. He didn't like the thought of Alec in pain, depriving himself of his basic needs. He had done it himself once and could safely say it was awful and that he'd never do it again. Someone like Alec didn't deserve to go through whatever it was that was forcing him to lock himself away like that. 

“Does he do this a lot?” Maia asked. 

Jace shook his head. “No. He throws himself into work sometimes, sure, but never like this. I just don't get it.” 

Clary placed a comforting hand over his across the table and he gave her a small smile, his eyes sad. 

“I know what'll cheer him up.” Lydia piped up. 

“If this is about your sex life, we'd prefer not to hear it.” Magnus said.

Lydia laughed and shook her head. “No, movie night. You know, like we used to do when we were kids.” 

Izzy’s eyes lit up and she beamed, grabbing onto Lydia’s arm tightly. “Lydia! That's an amazing idea, he'll love that!” 

“I figured he would.” She smiled shyly back, a light pink tint to her cheeks as she stared at the grinning girl clutching to her arm. 

“Figured who would what?” Alec asked, sliding into the empty seat between Lydia and Jace that was always reserved just for him. He looked tired, Magnus noticed. His eyes were dark and heavy and his hair was even messier than usual, pieces falling into his eyes. He was wearing a rumpled sweater over his uniform, something Magnus had never seen him do before. He was usually so good about sticking to his self appointed dress code, always looking presentable. Today, well, today he didn't. 

Lydia turned to him and grinned. “You have a brilliant girlfriend.” 

He laughed, lacing his fingers through hers, and Magnus felt his heart squeeze painfully in his chest. “I already knew that. But to what do I owe the reminder?” 

“She said we should do a movie night!” Izzy beamed, still holding tightly to Lydia’s arm. “Remember, like when we were kids!” 

“Of course I remember,” Alec laughed. “And my girlfriend is a genius. I think we could all use a movie night.” He said, bringing her hand up and placing a light kiss on the back of it.

Lydia smiled sweetly at him and leaned up, planting a quick kiss on his cheek. Magnus turned away, looking down at his phone to avoid the conversation he clearly wasn't a part of. 

“That means you guys too,” Izzy said, catching the attention of the remaining four people at the table. “You're all invited, pyjamas are permitted, onesies encouraged. Sleep over, delve into the Lightwood childhood for a night.” 

It was an incredibly tempting offer, Magnus would give her that. But he didn't know if he could stand to be in the same house, let alone the same room, as Alec and Lydia without doing something stupid. 

“One condition.” Maia said.

“Name it.” Jace smirked. 

Maia smiled her mischievous grin and Magnus knew exactly where this was going. The other two boys seemed to catch on, as well as Clary, because the group gave each other looks of pure amusement. 

“Should I be concerned?” Alec asked. 

Maia shook her head. “Not if you play fair. We wanna incorporate some of our movie night traditions, if you'll let us.” 

Alec shrugged. “Any in particular you wanna share?” 

“First person to fall asleep owes everybody else twenty bucks.” Simon said instantly, causing the other four to laughed. 

Izzy smiled, shrugging her shoulders lightly. “That can be arranged. Better start saving up, brother dearest, you're gonna be losing a lot of money.” 

“I'll keep him awake,” Jace smirked, slinging his arm around Alec's shoulders. “He's saving his money for something special.” He winked at the other boy and Alec gave him a knowing smile.

“Alec I swear if you propose to Lydia I'll scream.” Simon promised, earning him a chorus of laughter from the group. 

Alec smiled, shaking his head and pushing his hand through his bangs. “Not until she turns eighteen. This is something extra special that only Jace is allowed to know about.” 

“I don't like being left out of this.” Izzy pouted. 

“It sounds like whatever you're saving up for, it's probably a stupid decision.” Clary pointed out. 

Jace shrugged. “Maybe we'll think so in ten years.” 

“Oh god, this is a permanent thing?” Maia said. 

“Yeah,” Alec smiled, leaning on Jace enough that he almost fell out of his chair. “And it's probably pretty stupid.” 

“I think I know what you're talking about.” Raphael said. 

Alec raised an eyebrow. “Do you?” 

Raphael simply nodded, earning an amused smirk from the older boy. “Well, why don't you come over here and tell me then, pretty boy.” 

Magnus nearly choked on his drink at the comment, his eyes wide as he looked back up at Alec who simply grinned. Raphael patted him lightly on the back before standing up, leaning over Alec's shoulder to whisper something to him. His face lit up in a grin and he nodded. Raphael straightened up, a smug smile on his face at his correct assumptions. “You know, I can help you with that if you'd like.” 

“Can you?” Jace asked. Raphael nodded and he gave him an appreciative smile. “That would be great, Raphael. Thank you.” 

“Oh, I won't do it for free.” He assured them.

Alec laughed and the bell went off. Everyone could take their time to get to their classes except Alec, who's first class was on the other side of the building. He quickly dropped a kiss on Lydia's forehead, doing the same to Izzy. Jace gave him an expectant look and Alec rolled his eyes, leaning over and plating a kiss on his forehead as well. Jace grinned, standing up and ruffling his hair before Alec ran off with a wave. Magnus watched as he left, deciding then and there that he was either going to get to the bottom of whatever was bothering Alexander Lightwood or die trying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, sorry, I'm back. I'm sorry I was gone for so long and I'm sorry this chapter is so short but I promise I'll make it up to you with the next chapter. Never the less, I hope you enjoyed it and I promise I won't be gone so long this time.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang have a movie night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

“Dios, Magnus, stop pacing, you're driving me crazy.” 

Magnus sighed, turning back to Raphael who was sitting calmly amidst the collection of pillows on Magnus’s bed, an open book balanced on his knee as he watched his friend. The sight was comfortingly familiar to Magnus. The young man had spent a great deal of time in that very spot, doing anything ranging from sleeping, to doing school work, to sobbing against Magnus’s shoulder about how unfair life was. This room was as much his as it was Magnus’s. Magnus walked over and threw himself down beside him, burying his face in one of the pillows and groaning. Raphael scooted to the side slightly, patting Magnus lightly on the head. 

“She'll be here soon, stop worrying.” Their small group, save for Simon, had decided to meet at Magnus’s before heading to the Lightwoods home that night.

Magnus groaned again, rolling over and staring up at his friend. “Why are you being so optimistic?” 

He scoffed, flipping the page of his book. “I'm not being optimistic, I'm being logical. She's four minutes late, Magnus.” 

“But what if something happened!” he exclaimed, burying his face in a pillow again.

“Then she'd call one of us,” Raphael said calmly. “And stop rolling around, you'll mess up your hair.” 

Magnus laughed lightly, rolling to the side to grab his phone off the table. Still no calls or texts from Maia. 

“You know she doesn't have to update you on her progress of getting here.” Raphael mused, eyes still trained on his book. 

“I know,” Magnus scoffed. He sat up, leaning over his friends shoulder to look at the current object of his interest, scrunching up his nose in distaste as he read part of it. “What is this anyways?” 

“War and Peace.” Raphael said. 

Magnus opened his mouth to make a comment when the sound of the door opening downstairs stopped him. He grinned, shoving Raphael’s arm as he shot up, rushing out his bedroom door to the stairs. 

“Maia!” he called down, leaning over the railing more than could be considered safe. “You made it! You were starting to worry us darling.” 

Maia looked down at her watch then back up at Magnus. “I'm six minutes late.” 

“That's six minutes too many,” Magnus said, turning back to his room and grabbing his bag. “Raphael, let's go.” 

Said boy merely rolled his eyes, folding the corner of his page and stuffing the book into his own bag, slinging it over his shoulder as he was practically dragged from the room by his overexcited friend. 

“Ma! We're on our way!” Magnus called out, shoving his feet into his boots. 

His mother came out from the kitchen, drying her hands on a towel as she moved and slinging it over her shoulder. “Alright. Have a lovely time, kids. Call me if anything happens, alright?” She said, holding her son's face lightly between her hands. 

“Yes ma'am.” Magnus nodded. 

“Good boy,” She smiled, kissing him lightly on the forehead, moving to do the same to Raphael before she patted them both on the shoulder and shooed them out of the house. “Now off with you, don't keep your friends waiting! Take plenty of photos for me to see tomorrow! Maia, make sure my boys make it back in one piece.” 

Maia raised her arm in a mock solute before she jogged down to the driveway. Magnus’s mother had always viewed Raphael as a second son to her, loving him just as much as she loved her own boy. 

"Don't get into too much trouble." She warned them.

Magnus laughed, waving to his mom as he walked out the door. “Love you!” he called back into the house, watching as his mother blew him a kiss and shut the door. 

Maia’s truck was still running in the driveway where she had parked it earlier when the three left the house. 

“You need to stop doing that my dear,” Magnus scolded her, waiting for Raphael to scoot into the middle so Magnus could have the passenger seat. “One of these days someone is going to steal your truck.” 

Raphael laughed. “Have you seen it?” 

Maia swatted him on the arm, clicking her seatbelt into place as Magnus laughed, pulling out of the driveway quickly. Maia wasn't the greatest driver Magnus knew, he'd admit, but he still trusted her with his life more than Raphael. The boy had failed his driving test seventeen times before finally getting his license, and despite his continuous insistence that he'd gotten better Magnus was still wary of getting into any vehicle where his dear friend was behind the wheel. He himself was unable to drive, although he wouldn't complain. He had two, now three with the addition of Alec to his life, perfectly capable drivers to take him wherever he pleased. 

“Does anybody have any clue where the Lightwoods even live?” Maia asked, turning onto a street she vaguely knew lead to the address they were given. 

Magnus shook his head. “I'm afraid not my dear. We'll just have to try and hope for the best.” 

“Simon would know where we're going,” Raphael said, his attention turned back to his book he had pulled out of his bag at some point in the five minutes they'd been driving. “He has some strange way of knowing where every street in Brooklyn is.” 

Raphael did have a point, Magnus would admit. Their missing member did have a talent for memorizing streets and maps, although he was a little directionally challenged. Simon had grabbed a ride with Clary, the two living closer to each other than he did to Magnus, and he would admit he was slightly missing their talkative companion. He wouldn't miss out on the golden opportunity to tease his friend, though. “Well, Raphael, I'm sorry your boyfriend got a different ride.” 

Raphael scoffed, although Magnus did note that he didn't deny his comment about the nature of his relationship to Simon, and turned his attention back to his book. “What's so special about that book anyways? You've had your nose stuck in it since you arrived this morning.” 

He shrugged, flipping the page. “It's good.” He didn't offer any further explanation, and Magnus didn't ask for one. 

They drove for a while, Maia taking multiple wrong turns and having to double back. The Lightwoods seemed to live in the hardest to find part of Brooklyn. They drove in circles for a little bit, all three of them unable to see the house numbers on the houses, until they finally found the right place. Maia pulled into the driveway and removed her keys from the ignition, but nobody moved. The three all simply stared at the house looking before them. It was much bigger than any of them had thought it would be, that was something they were all certain about. 

Magnus took a deep breath, rolling his shoulders back, and threw open his door. “Now or never, right?” he said, dropping from inside the truck and grabbing his bag from where it had been sitting by his feet. “They're just our friends, I don't know why we're so nervous.” 

“Maybe it has something to do with the fact that their house looks like a fucking hotel?” Maia suggested, unbuckling her own seatbelt and slipping out of the truck. 

“Maybe.” Magnus grinned, jogging to the front door and leaving the other two to catch up. He took another deep breath, grounding himself, before he pushed down on the doorbell. He waited for a few seconds, Maia and Raphael reaching him in that time, and contemplated pushing the button again before the door was thrown open by a grinning Isabelle Lightwood. 

“Magnus!” she cheered, throwing her arms around his shoulders and drawing him into a tight hug. “I'm so glad you guys could make it!” she repeated the action with Raphael and Maia and then ushered them into the house. “You can leave your coats and shoes by the door. The boys and Lydia are already downstairs.” 

As if spurred on by Izzy’s comment Magnus heard the distinct shout of none other than Jace Herondale echo around the room. “Are you fucking kidding me?!” 

The group looked between themselves before they broke out into laughter. Izzy motioned for them to follow her, starting off down a hallway and leaving the three of them to catch up. They rounded a corner and slipped downstairs, walking out into a large, open area of their basement. Magnus didn't quite know what he had been expecting from Jace's shouting, but what he encountered was definitely not it. Alec and Jace were caught up in what looked to be a very heated game of ping pong, both hitting the ball and hard as it seemed they could, determined looks on their faces. Lydia was sat on a table a safe distance from them cheering them on. Magnus could only laugh, watching as Izzy rolled her eyes and sat down next to Lydia, the three of them following behind her. This seemed to catch Alec's attention, taking away precious seconds of focus that caused the ball to fly past them. 

“Yes!” Jace cheered, throwing his hands up. Lydia shot Alec and sympathetic look, swatting Izzy on the arm when she cheered right along with the blonde boy. “Own up Lightwood.” 

Alec groaned, dropping his paddle on the table and turning around, his fingers locking behind his neck. “Please don't aim for my head.” 

The doorbell sounded upstairs, signaling the arrival of their last two guests, and Lydia dashed from the room to answer it before Izzy could even stand up. Clearly, Lydia did not want to watch whatever Jace was about to do to Alec. Magnus turned his attention back to the boys, watching with genuine interest of what they were doing as Jace raised his paddle, ping pong ball held loosely in his other hand. He smashed the paddle into it, watching as it collided hard with Alec's spine, the sharp sound of the contact ringing out around the room. Magnus sucked in a breath as Alec's back curved, a pained noise coming from his mouth. Jace and Izzy laughed, watching as Alec leaned over onto the table before joining in on their laughter himself. 

“Alright, stop hurting yourselves, the stragglers are here.” Lydia teased, walking into the room with Clary and Simon trailing close behind her. 

Jace grinned, walking over and grabbing Clary by the waist, pulling her into a kiss that she very willingly returned. Simon pretended to gag next to them, earning a chorus of laughter from the group, and grabbed Clary's bag from where it had been deposited on the floor. He dumped it onto the table where the others had left theirs, plopping himself down next to Raphael and grinning brightly at the boy. Raphael smiled lightly back, slipping his book back into his bag. Magnus raised an eyebrow at him. That was the first time he had put that book down all day. 

“Alec, come help me with snacks!” Jace called, ducking out of the door and heading back upstairs. Alec followed quickly after him, patting Magnus on the shoulder as he passed. 

“What are we watching?” Clary asked, moving to sit down on one of the couches across from the large TV. Simon threw himself down beside her, followed by Raphael. 

Izzy shrugged, slumping down in a large arm chair, pulling Lydia down to sit beside her. They were pressed close together but still both fit in the oversized chair. “We haven't really decided yet. We're trying to pick something that Alec won't get into an argument about.” 

Lydia laughed, leaning her head on Izzy’s shoulder. Magnus noted how the girls face turned red at the action. “You should have seen him when we watched The Maze Runner. I've never seen him so heated about something.” 

“Newt was gay!” Alec shouted, walking back into the room with his arms full of snacks, the group all laughing at his remark as he dropped them down on the coffee table. He threw himself down onto a loveseat, pulling his phone out of his pocket and looking at something. 

Jace walked into the room with even more food, placing it down on the table alongside what Alec brought down. He sat down next to Alec, who moved his arm so it was across the back of the loveseat, Jace curling into his side. He didn't take his eyes off his phone, quickly typing something out before tossing it onto the side table next to him. Maia had situated herself by Simon's feet and Magnus moved to sit against Alec's side of the loveseat. 

“I vote we watch Harry Potter.” Simon said. A unanimous agreement came across the group and Izzy removed herself from the chair to fish out their box set. 

“Does everybody know their Hogwarts houses?” Clary asked. “I'm Gryffindor.” 

“Gryffindor.” Jace grinned, leaning forwards to snatch a bowl of chips off the table and dropping it onto Alec's lap. 

“Hufflepuff.” Simon said. 

Lydia smiled at him. “Me too!” Simon leaned around Clary to give her a high five, almost falling off the couch in the process. 

“Ravenclaw!” Izzy piped up from her position at the movie cabinet, emerging with all right Harry Potter movies in her hands. 

Raphael nodded at her. “Me too.” 

“Same,” Maia said, popping open a coke and taking a swig. “At least that's what Bat tells me, I've never bothered to take the test.” 

“Slytherin.” Alec said, grabbing a handful of chips and stuffing them into his mouth before Jace could eat the entire bowl. 

Magnus smiled. “I'm in Slytherin as well.” 

“Well now that that's sorted,” Izzy said, putting the first movie into the player. “I can't help but notice we're missing a key element of movie nights.” 

“And that is?” Alec asked, swatting Jace's hand away when he reached for more chips. 

She held up a finger, disappearing from the room. Magnus looked up and him and raised an eyebrow. Alec shrugged, reaching for another handful of chips before getting hit in the head with a pillow. Jace laughed, earning a pillow directed at him too. Izzy dumped a pile of blankets and pillows on the floor in front of the TV. “Get comfortable everyone! It's movie time.” she fell back into the chair next to Lydia, pulling a blanket tightly around the two of them. Everyone else went to grab blankets and pillows, settling in as Izzy dimmed the lights and the movie began. Magnus settled in against the couch, his head hitting Alec's knee as he rested against his legs. 

They got through four movies and enough snacks to feed a small army before almost everyone had crashed. Lydia fell asleep first, her head fell onto Izzy’s shoulder halfway through the second movie. Simon followed not far behind, falling asleep on Raphael by the time Prisoner of Azkaban started. Maia had eventually laid down on the floor and fallen asleep during the third, followed by Clary, Raphael, and Izzy. Jace had practically dragged Alec down onto the couch so he could cuddle against him and soon after fell asleep with Alec's arm thrown over his side, leaving Magnus and Alec as the only two remaining awake. Alec, with more effort than would have been necessary if it hadn't been for his friend practically lying on him, grabbed the remote and turned off the TV, leaving the two of them to succumb to sleep in the darkness, soft smiles on both of their faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woop that one happened fast didn't it. I've had this chapter in particular planned for a while so I hope you liked it. I hope you enjoyed the fluff while it lasted because shit is about to hit the fan in everyone's lives. 
> 
> Comment your opinions please! I love reading your thoughts and ideas, you're all great and I love you.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec makes a bad decision

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

When Magnus rolled over the next morning, the first thing he noticed was that he was one of three people still asleep. Upon further inspection he discovered that fact was incorrect. He was one of two people still asleep, the third person in the room was wide awake. Simon was sprawled out across the couch, his head in Raphael's lap and his arm wrapped around his waist. Raphael had his book balanced on the smaller boys shoulder. He seemed to notice the movement across the room and looked up, eyes catching Magnus’s. He raised an eyebrow at him and Magnus vaguely gestured to the boy lying across him. Raphael shrugged, mouthing “he's comfortable” and turning his attention back to his book. Magnus forced himself out of the pile of blankets he had found himself buried under and rubbed at his eyes. 

There was a lot of noise going on upstairs, that he was sure of, so he pulled himself off the floor and went upstairs to find the source. The followed it down a hallway and out into a large, open living room and kitchen. Lydia was sitting on a bar stool at the counter, Izzy perched on the actual counter next to her. The two were chatting animatedly with Maia who was sitting at the other stool. Jace was further into the kitchen. He appeared to be filming something, phone held out in front of him as he laughed happily at whatever he was watching. Magnus’s view of the kitchen was obscured by a wall, but whatever it was had clearly gained the attention of the other three as well, as they looked over and started laughing along with Jace, phones being pulled out of pockets. Magnus started to shuffle further into the room and smiled at the sight that greeted him. 

Alec and Clary, mostly Clary, were dancing around the kitchen making pancakes. He just then registered the music playing from a phone sitting on the counter. Clary was spinning around, trying, and failing, to help Alec figure out the steps to the dance she was making up as she went along. She held her hands between his, swinging them back and forth as they moved and laughing when he stumbled. He gave her a devious smile and let go of one of her hands, using the one he was still holding onto to spin her, earning a screech and a laugh from the tiny girl. It was quite the sight, Magnus would admit. 

He moved over to the counter and leaned against it, smiling at Maia when she noticed him. “Morning Mags.” 

“Morning.” He hummed, stifling a yawn behind his hand. 

Not even a minute later Raphael and Simon emerged, Simon clearly still half asleep as he held onto Raphael’s arm. They joined the others at the breakfast bar, Raphael sliding into the remaining stool and Simon hopping up onto the counter next to him. 

“Breakfast is served!” Alec declared, placing a large plate of pancakes on the counter, followed by Clary who placed a second heaping plate next to his. “Enjoy.” 

And enjoy they did. Everyone had at least six. Alec ended up making a third plate that was devoured just as quickly as the first two had. They sat and chatted for another hour about anything and everything, and Magnus would admit it was probably the greatest morning he'd had in a while. This group was just so easy for him to be a part of. He found himself laughing so hard his stomach ached more than once, bent over the counter with tears running from his eyes as Alec and Jace retold stories of the adventures they had when they were kids. The two had clearly known each other for a long time, sharing in multiple stories. Magnus’s particular favourite was the story of how Alec broke his nose playing Mario Kart. He'd gotten incredibly frustrated with the game and thrown his control, only to have it bounce back off of something and hit him in the face, effectively breaking his nose. According to Alec, it was the only body part he'd ever broken, although Jace and Izzy both insisted that he'd broken his wrist bowling once. It was a story for another day, they'd said, and Magnus smiled at the thought that they'd have more days like this.

Eventually it had reached one o'clock and they decided that may be getting dressed would be a good option. Izzy hopped down from the counter, rolling her shoulders back and stretching her arms above her head. “Girls can change in my room if they want. First door on the left upstairs.” She shot a wink to the three girls and sauntered off upstairs, leaving them to follow her. It seemed to be something she did often. The girls followed quickly after her, leaving the boys to sit around the kitchen. 

“You guys can just change wherever if you wanna. My rooms open if you want.” Alec suggested, already hopping off his stool. 

“Second door on the right. The doors black, it's hard to miss.” Jace smiled, clapping a hand on Alec's back and heading up the stairs two at a time. Alec rolled his eyes and followed quickly after him, mumbling something about breaking things under his breath as he went. 

“Should we go after them?” Simon asked. 

Raphael shrugged and Magnus sighed. “It's probably our best bet. I have no idea where they put our bags.” 

Izzy had taken their bags somewhere the night before, claiming they needed the space they were taking up on the table. For what, he had no idea, as nothing was placed on the table for the rest of the night. 

“I suppose you’re right.” Raphael shrugged, moving from his stool and practically pulling Simon off the counter. They went up the stairs slowly, careful not to disturb anything as they looked around. The house was massive. Magnus wondered what type of job their parents had to afford a place that big. He also wondered where they were. He’d assumed they’d be back right now, or that he’d at least get a glimpse of the infamous younger brother Izzy had spent hours talking about. Neither had made an appearance for the entire night, much less that morning. 

They found Alec’s room easy enough with Jace’s tip about the black door. It was clearly meant to be white but had been painted a while ago, the once pristine paint chipping a bit around the edges of the door and the handle. Simon grabbed the handle quickly while Magnus had been staring at the door, pushing it open and stepping inside, effectively breaking Magnus out of his small trance. He stepped in after him, followed by Raphael who closed the door with a swift click. The inside of the room was just as Magnus had expected it to be. It was plain, a black and white colour scheme coating the room. There was a desk against one wall and a bed against another, a small dresser across from the window next to a door he could only assume lead to a bathroom as it was closed. That, however, wasn’t what caught Magnus’s attention the most upon entering the room. 

Alec and Jace had both clearly been in the middle of changing as neither had a shirt on. Magnus felt his breath catch in his throat at the sight of the half naked Alec stood in front of him, watching with intense interest as he pulled a sweater over his head. A sudden jealousy sparked for his teammates, who got to see that everyday, or even for Jace, who seemed to be in here a lot. Raphael punched him harshly in the shoulder, bringing his attention back to the world around him. He reached for his bag, which was sitting on the bed, prompting Magnus to do the same. 

“You should be lucky you get those right now,” Jace said, pulling a shirt that very clearly did not belong to him over his head. “I had to risk going into Izzy’s room and chance seeing one of the girls naked. I mean, not that I’m complaining.” He added and Alec hit him on the shoulder, hard. 

Jace winced and pulled his arm back, rubbing at the spot which was sure to bruise soon with the force of the hit. “Ow, dude, I was joking. Izzy may as well be my sister and only you get to see Lydia like that.”

A red flush sprouted on Alec’s cheeks and he ducked his head, rifling through a drawer in his dresser without another word. The other three had pretty much finished getting dressed by now, and Magnus would admit it was probably the plainest he had ever looked in the presence of the Lightwood-Herondale duo, even when forced into that god awful school uniform. None of them said anything else as they finished changing, heading back downstairs where the girls were chatting animatedly about something. When Izzy noticed them she immediately perked up, grinning brightly at her brother who raised a questioning eyebrow at her. 

“Big brother,” she said, drawing out the vowels of the word with sweetness dripping from her voice. “Can we borrow your car?” 

“What for?” he asked, moving forwards and slinging an arm around Lydia who curled into his side immediately. 

Izzy smiled sweetly. “Shopping.” Alec opened his mouth to protest but she stopped him, talking over whatever he had been about to say. “I know, I know, you hate lending me your car, but the trunk is bigger and carries more stuff.”

“Please Alec?” Lydia said, looking up at him with wide eyes. 

Alec groaned and nodded, earning cheers from the girls and a tight hug from Lydia. “But, I'm using your car for the day.” 

“Deal.” Izzy smiled, shaking his hand enthusiastically. Alec smiled at her, reaching over and ruffling her hair to which she loudly protested. “Is it okay if we head out now? It's already kinda late and I wanna get in as much shopping time as possible.” 

Alec rolled his eyes but gestured towards the door. “Be my guest.” 

Izzy smiled and pulled him into a quick hug, followed by Lydia who planted a kiss on his cheek. Maia stood up with them and Raphael raised an eyebrow at her. “You're taking Maia shopping?” 

“Yeah,” Izzy nodded. “It was her idea.” 

Raphael gave a nod of understanding. “I see. Would you mind if I tagged along? I've been meaning to buy some new clothes.” 

Izzy grinned at him and nodded enthusiastically, grabbing his hand and dragging him out the door with one final wave to her brother, followed quickly by the other two girls. 

“I'm gonna drive these two home if that's cool with you.” Jace said, gesturing vaguely to Clary and Simon. Alec nodded his approval and the three of them left, leaving Alec and Magnus alone. 

“You gonna head out soon too?” Alec asked him. 

Magnus smiled and shook his head. “I think I'd like to talk with you some more. And even if I wanted to leave, I can't. Maia was kind of my ride.” 

Alec smiled at him and Magnus’s heart stuttered I'm his chest. “Well,” he said. “What would you like to do?” 

They ended up going out for ice cream, much like that time Alec rescued Magnus from a night of homework. Magnus snapped a couple good photos of him and Alec demanded he send them to him for Instagram content. 

“You have an Instagram?” Magnus asked, raising an eyebrow at him. “Like, a personal one?” 

He had an account dedicated to his photography, Magnus knew that, but the idea of Alec having a personal account was truly baffling to him. He nodded, holding his hand out for Magnus’s phone so he could put in his username. He handed it back and the first thing Magnus noticed was that he didn't click follow, leaving the choice up to him. He instantly clicked it. The second thing he noticed was that he had a huge following, larger than Magnus’s own. He didn't have very many posts, only twenty six, but people clearly liked seeing pictures of him on their feeds. 

“Izzy says I need to post more,” he said, stealing a spoonful of Magnus’s ice cream. “I don't see why.” 

Magnus nearly shrugged, turning his attention back to the device in his hand. He had quite a few photos with Izzy, as well as with Jace and Lydia. He even had a couple with Clary and some with a small boy he assumed was Max. He had a few on his own, some with his team, some with his family as a whole, but the one Magnus liked the most was from the night before. It was of their small group, save for Lydia who took the picture, huddled around the t.v. the night before. Alec had an arm slung around Jace, the other one pulling at Magnus’s hair. He had done it because he stole his drink, Magnus remembered. Jace was looking on in obvious disgust as Clary leaned over the back of the couch, a wide grin on her face as she tried to steal his bowl of chips while he wasn't paying attention. At some point Izzy had moved to sit next to him on the floor and was sitting at his side, legs thrown over Simon's lap when he had sat down next to the snacks table. Raphael and Maia were nowhere to be found. It merely said “caption this”. 

“I regret to inform you that I'll be stealing this picture for my own account.” He said, switching off his phone and turning his attention back to the other boy. 

He laughed. “That's perfectly fine with me.” 

Magnus's phone pinged and he looked down at it. It was a text from Jonathan, asking if he should pick him up. He texted back a ‘sure’ before once again turning back to Alec. “Jonathan’s on his way.” 

He was probably imagining the day Alec's face fell at his comment, but he nodded and stole another bite of Magnus’s ice cream, earning him a swat on the arm. “Alright. Wanna head out then, wait outside?” 

He nodded and the two stood up, tossing out empty cups and walking outside. Alec plopped down on a bench nearby, prompting Magnus to do the same. They sat in silence for a little bit, both comfortable to not say anything, before Alec turned so he was facing Magnus. He looked back at him and smiled, expecting him to say something. He didn't. Instead he leaned forwards, brushing his lips lightly across Magnus’s. He leaned back, looking at him for a moment, before pressing his lips against his again, this time with much more surety. Magnus wanted it, god did he want it, and he kissed back with everything he had, hands gripping to his shirt as he did. But the smiling face of Lydia crossed his mind and he pulled back suddenly, pressing his hands against Alec's chest to push him away. 

“Alec, you can't.” 

“Why not?” Alec asked, leaning forwards to kiss him again. 

Magnus wanted to let him, but he wasn't going to be used to cheat on someone. “Alec stop! You have a girlfriend!” 

He seemed to come back to himself then, pushing himself as far away from Magnus as the small bench would allow and, deciding that wasn't enough, stood up, running his hands through his messy hair. “Shit, Magnus I'm so sorry. Fuck, that was a mistake, I'm sorry. Let's just pretend this didn't happen, okay?” 

Magnus opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by a car horn. He recognized it as Jonathan’s and stood up. He nodded at Alec and practically ran over to the car, throwing himself inside and leaning back against the seat. 

“You okay, Mags?” Jonathan asked as he pulled away from the curb. 

He didn't know how to answer that, so he didn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry?? We've reached the beginning of the angst I hope you're ready. This shit is a slowburn for a reason. 
> 
> Comment your opinions please!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec does some much needed venting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

“Lydia.” The young girl didn't look up from her book, eyes trained on the paper, skimming across the words. Alec sighed. “Lydia.” He tried again, his voice cracking. 

She must have heard the split in his voice as she finally looked up, eyes growing wide when she looked at him. 

“Alec, what happened?” She said quickly, slamming her book closed and scrambling off her bed, rushing over to him. 

“I did something stupid, Lyds. Something really, really stupid.” tears were welling up in his eyes and hers widened even more in concern. She pulled him down into a tight hug, letting him cry into her shoulder softly as she moved him to the edge of her bed. 

“What happened?” She asked again, running her fingers through his hair in a way she knew calmed him. 

“Magnus,” he choked out, burying his face into her neck. “I kissed him, Lyds.” 

Lydia sighed, pulling his arms around him tighter. “Oh Alec.” 

“I'm so sorry.” He said softly, running his hand up and down her back slightly. 

“Don't be ridiculous,” she scolded, pulling out of the hug to look at him. She put her hands on his cheeks, rubbing away the tears that were falling. “You have absolutely nothing to be sorry about.” 

“But I-" he started but she placed her hand over his mouth, widening her eyes when she looked at him to tell him to shut up. 

“Alec, it's okay. You have feelings for Magnus, it's okay, I know. I'm not your girlfriend, you don't have to apologize for being interested in someone.” She said. 

Alec sighed, dropping his face onto her shoulder. “Why do we keep telling people we're dating?” 

“Because,” she laughed, running her fingers through his hair again. “My parents are dicks and you're an amazing friend.” 

He flopped back onto her bed, tossing an arm over his eyes as his tears finally stopped. She scooted back and settled beside him, letting him move his head to rest in her lap as she played with his hair. She put little braids into his hair as she waited for him to speak, letting him make the choice for himself when he felt comfortable. After a few minutes of calm silence, he finally spoke again. “He kissed me back, Lyds.” 

“He did?” She smiled down at him. 

“Yeah,” he sighed. “But then he pulled away. He told me he wouldn't be used to cheat on someone.” 

“Well, we'll just have to make sure you're not cheating then, won't we?” 

“What do you mean?” he asked, sitting up and turning to face her. 

She grinned at him, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “I'm just gonna have to break up with you.” He smiled back, fully understanding where he was going with this. “Oh,” she said, holding out a finger, sing along for him to wait for her to do something. “I got you a present.” 

“Why did you do that?” he asked, arching as she scooted off her bed and moved to her desk, ducking down to grab something out a bag sitting st the bottom of it. 

She looked up at him, raising a perfectly shaped eyebrow. “Because I love you?” 

He shrugged, leaning back against her headboard. “Valid.” 

“Got it,” she announced, smiling triumphantly and plopping back down on the bed next to him. She held out a small, well wrapped box. “Open it.” 

He raised an eyebrow at the formality, taking it from her hand and looking it over. “Why did you wrap it?” 

She shrugged. “Got bored.” 

He looked at her for a second before shrugging as Well, turning his attention back to the gift. He pulled at the wrapoling, laughing loudly at the offended noise she made when he ripped it, and pulled it off, revealing a small black box. He opened it carefully, not sure what he was expecting, and almost cried at what was inside. He looked up at her, a wide grin spreading across his face. 

She grinned back. “Put it on!” 

Inside the box was a simple black ring, silver along the sides. Underneath, however, the band was rainbow. It was perfect. He took it out of the box, sliding it onto his middle finger, running his thumb over the cool metal after he settled it there. He looked back up at Lydia, smiling brightly at her, and pulled her into a tight hug. She hugged him back just as tight, a grin to match his own across her face. 

\---

When Alec got to school the next day, a part of him wanted to turn around and leave as soon as he stepped inside. He spotted his friends at their usual table, all smiles and laughing amongst each other, and there was Magnus. He had his stupid beautiful smile on full display as he laughed at Jace and Simon's bottle flipping contest. His heart ached just a little bit, but he didn't back down. This was something he had to do. Not just for his stupid crush on Magnus, but for himself. He took a deep breath, running his thumb over the cool metal of the ring on his finger, and walked to the table. He smiled lightly at everyone as he sat down. He skipped over his usual seat between Jace and Lydia and instead sat down at the end of the table next to Clary, which didn't go unnoticed by his friends. 

“Wrong spot, man. Girlfriends over here.” Jace joked, making Alec's heart jump into his throat. He breathed past the sudden anxiety bubbling in his chest, eyes flicking to Lydia for no more than a second. He stroked over the ring again, looking down at his hands. 

“Actually,” Lydia said, refocusing the tables attention onto her. Alec shot her a grateful smile behind their backs. “We kinda need to tell you something.” 

“You're pregnant?” Izzy supplied, smiling when her joke made Lydia blush. 

“I'm a virgin, so no.” Alec said. 

“That's explains so much.” Simon said. 

Alec opted to ignore him. “We actually have something serious to tell you.” 

“Well, out with it, we don't have all day.” Magnus said, a hint of annoyance Alec was positive was aimed at him in his voice. 

“We broke up.” Lydia said. 

The table went silent. Alec felt the anxiety in his chest crawl further up, settling in his throat and making it hard to breathe. He automatically went to touch the ring again, something he'd found himself doing a lot in the day he'd had it. It was comforting, to know that somebody knew his little secret, especially when that somebody was supposed to be his girlfriend. Ex-girlfriend, his mind supplied unhelpfully, and he found himself taking an extra deep breath in. When another few minutes passed without anybody saying anything, merely looking between each other as though they were communicating silently, Lydia finally spoke. 

“Don't make this weird. We're still friends.” she said. 

Jace cleared his throat, looking down at the table. “Yeah, of course. Hey, if this is what's best for you guys, good for you.” 

“Why did you though?” Izzy asked, leaning her head on her hand. “Break up, I mean.” 

Alec felt like he couldn't breathe. His chest was tight, his lungs on fire. He looks frantically between his sister and Lydia, seven daring to skim his eyes over Jace. His mouth was moving, staring at him with obvious worry in his eyes, but he couldn't hear what he was saying. He felt Clary place her hand on his shoulder and he stood up as quickly as he could, backing away from the table. His friends were staring at him with concern in their eyes. Simon stood up too, approaching Alec with his hands out, speaking slowly. He couldn't hear him, he could only see his lips moving. The ringing in his ears was too loud. Simon took another few steps closer and that was all it took for him to break, turning around and bolting from the building, running as fast as his legs could carry him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is shorter than usual but we finally got a chapter from Alec's perspective. He's going through a rough patch right now and I know a lot of this chapter doesn't make sense but it will all be explained in the next one, I promise.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec breaks down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

Alec all but collapsed when he got home, the exhaustion of his anxiety attack setting in and tiring him down to the bone. He'd ran from the school straight back to his house, not bothering with trying to go to class that morning, his perfect attendance be damned. He contemplated running somewhere else. Maybe he'd go to the park he and Jace used to spend all their time at as children, or maybe to the benches outside the mall he went to with Izzy where he'd spent countless hours doing nothing and everything with her, maybe even to the library where he'd started having study sessions with Magnus. Magnus. He couldn't even think of him. A sour taste rose in his mouth every time he did. It's not that he was mad at him. It was quite the opposite. He was falling for Magnus. Falling hard and quick and fast. Nothing was working out for him as well as Magnus had been. And he had gone and screwed that all up. Magnus probably hated him now. He wouldn't be surprised if he did. If all of them did. 

“Alec?” 

The sound of his mother's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He looked at the clock on the wall. He'd been sitting there for longer than he thought he had. 

“Alec, are you here?” She called again, her voice ringing out in the house. He heard the approaching sound of her heels on the wood floor, stopping just outside the family room. “Oh, Alec.” 

He felt the couch dip down beside him but didn't dare lift his head. He wouldn't let his mother see him like this, glassy eyes and messy hair. He hadn't cried in front of his mother in years. Today was not the day to start again. “You're home early.” 

“I could say the same thing about you,” Maryse said. “I got a call from the school. They said you missed your first period class.” 

“So? Max and Izzy miss classes all the time. There was no need to rush home.” 

She rested her hand on his shoulder. “But you don't. You haven't missed a day of school since you got pneumonia in eighth grade, and even then you begged me to let you go. I knew something was wrong.” 

“It's nothing.” Alec said quickly, hoping he would get lucky and his mother would believe him and go back to work. 

Luck, as it was, was not on his side. “Do you remember when you were little and we'd go out and spend the day together when one of us was having problems we didn't want to think about? Just the two of us, no Izzy, no Max, no Robert.” Alec nodded and she smiled. “Why don't we do that today?” 

“But,” he sat up, turning to face his mother, temporarily forgetting how he didn't want her to see him upset. “You have work.” 

“And you have school,” she reminded him. She smiled in that knowing way mothers did when he didn't say anything else. “They'll survive a day without us.” 

Alec looked up at her as she stood up. “Come on, go get changed. From what I remember, those uniform shirts are uncomfortable.” She held out her hand and, surprising himself, Alec took it, letting her pull him up. 

Alec was quite a bit taller than his mom, even in her towering heels that couldn't have been comfortable. He'd been told often that he looked more like his mother than his father. It made him happy to know that he bared less resemblance to that awful man than he did to the parent that actually raised him. He nodded at her, moving to head to his room. Normally he'd take the stairs two or three at a time, spending as little time getting there as possible. Today, however, something in him felt compelled to walk slower. He looked at the photos that lined the wall on his way up. Any photos containing his father had been removed from their frames and replaced by ones without him. There were many of him and Izzy, less with Max as he hadn't been around as long but still a large portion, a few with Jace, and even some of all four, five when Jace was in the photos, members of their little household. 

He shook his head, moving up the stairs and into his room quickly. He slipped the door closed, leaning heavily against it, and he heard the click of his mother's heels as she moved down the hall into her own room. Alec looked around his room, eyes scanning over the blank walls and boring colours, and briefly wondered what would happen if he hung a pride flag on the wall, surround himself with pictures of his family, but some plants to place around the room. He shook off the thought just as quickly as it came. Now wasn't the time for thinking ridiculous thoughts. 

Moving to the closet, he pulled out the first pair of jeans he could find, replacing his slacks with them quickly. He immediately followed with his shirt, pulling at the buttons of his dress shirt with shaky hands and letting it slips off his shoulders, his tie already lost somewhere he didn't remember. He pulled a shirt out of his drawer, pulling it quickly over his head and inhaling deeply. The scent of whiskey and leather that clung to the fabric gave it away as Jace's almost instantly, probably left on the floor of his room during one of their many late nights to be thrown in with his laundry the next day. He couldn't bring himself to take it off. 

“Alec, sweetheart, are you ready to go?” Maryse called, lightly tapping on the door to his room.

Alec looked up, realizing he'd spent more time inhaling the scent of his best friend's shirt than was acceptable, and pulled on his shoes. He opened the door, coming face to face with his mother looking like he hadn't seen her look in years. She wore flats and jeans instead of heels and a skirt, her hair down instead of in the stiff ponytail it was usually trapped in. He couldn't stop the smile that spread onto his face at the sight. 

“Yeah, sorry, I'm good.” He said. 

She smiled, placing her hand lightly on his bicep. “Good. Where do you wanna go?” 

“Uh,” he looked around him as if the walls could tell him the answer to her question. “I'm not sure.” 

“Twenty four hour ice cream?” She suggested. 

Just the mention of the place made Alec's stomach twist. He remembered sitting there with Magnus not even a month before, his beautiful eyes and stupid smile flashing across his face. The place sounded wrong being talked about by someone else. Still, he couldn't think of anywhere else he wanted to spend the day, so he nodded. 

“Great.” his mother smiled, fishing her keys out of her pocket as they walked down the hall. 

“Shit.” He mumbled suddenly. 

Maryse turned to him and raised an eyebrow. “Something you'd care to share?” 

“I forgot my car at school.” 

“Izzy can drive it home.” She said, clearly having found the best solution to the problem.   
Alec's eyes widened in alarm. “Izzy can't drive.” 

Maryse shrugged. “She can try,” he laughed at that and she smiled, clearly satisfied with herself. “I'll drop you off at the school at the end of the day so you can pick it up.” 

“Thank you.” 

They walked the rest of the way to the car in silence. It wasn't the awkward kind that had filled their cafeteria table earlier after he and Lydia announced their breakup that wasn't really a breakup. This one was comfortable, calm. It didn't press down on him to day something like it had earlier. This time it just was. That was something Alec found he could live with. He locked the door behind him and his mother started the car, smiling at him as he slipped into the passenger's seat and they pulled out of the driveway. It was still quiet, but a couple minutes into the drive his mother broke it. 

“That's a nice ring,” she observed, clearly noticing him running his thumb over it like it was a life line. It was, in a way, he supposed. “Did Lydia buy it for you?” 

“Yeah.” He nodded. She smiled, and they were silent again for another minute before he took a deep breath, finding his voice again to tell his mother everything he wanted to tell her. “Mom, about Lydia.” he was quiet again for a moment, not quite sure of what to say.

“What, did you get her pregnant?” She joked. When she turned to look at him and he wasn't smiling, however, she started to panic. “By the angel, did you actually get her pregnant? Alec, I was joking, my god.”

“No! No, she's not pregnant,” Alec said quickly. He took another deep breath. “We broke up.” 

She looked at him, a concerned from creasing between her eyebrows before she turned her attention back to the road, turning a corner. “I'm sorry, Alec. Are you two still friends?” 

He was going to do it. He was going to tell her. He just had to work his way up to it. “Actually, we never really dated.” 

“I'm not sure I'm understanding this.” Maryse was confused. It was obvious by her pinched facial expression, though her eyes remained soft. 

Well, here goes nothing. “Lydia likes girls.” It wasn't quite what he'd meant to say, but it was a start. He’d see how she reacted to that before he told her anything else. "Her parents, they'd freak out if they knew, and she's never had a boyfriend, so we pretended to date to keep them off her back." 

“Good for her. I'm glad she had the courage to do that, it's a hard thing to do. I hope her situation gets better.” 

That wasn't what Alec had been expecting at all. He'd been expecting an outburst, yelling, a homophobic rant. All things he knew he would have gotten from his father in the same situation. Maryse is not Robert, he reminded himself. She's nothing like him. 

“I do too. Like girls, I mean,” he shook his head. “Well, not, that's wrong, I don't like girls, I like boys. But I can learn to like girls, if that's what you want me to do. Just not Lydia. She seems to have her mind made up. If you wanna yell at me that's okay.” 

“Alec-" 

“And I know you're probably super disappointed and everything and it's okay if you hate me now.” 

“Alec-" 

“I totally understand. You took it well when it came to Lydia but I guess it's different when it's your own son.” 

“Alexander!” 

Alec stopped his rambling at the sound of her raised voice, turning to look at his mother. She’d pulled onto an empty side street that he knew nobody ever drove down and the only thought that his mind could form was that she was going to kill him, going to throw him out of her car and never come back. He looked down, preparing for the worst. 

“Alec,” she sighed, her voice surprisingly gentle. “You're gay.” 

“I'm sorry.” He said quietly. 

He expected her to yell, to lash out. What he didn't expect, however, was the soft laugh that came from the driver's seat. He looked up, read filled eyes locking on his mother. “Oh, my darling boy, you have nothing to be sorry for. I love you so much, Alec, and nothing you ever tell me will change that. Who cares if you like boys. It doesn't change what type of person you are in here.” She placed her hand over his heart. 

“But dad-" 

“Your father,” she cut him off, her eyes going slightly colder at the mention of her ex husband. “Is a horrid man and will never be a part of your life again, no matter how much he wants to. I'll see to it.” 

“So you're not mad?” 

“Never.” She said, leaning over to pull him into a hug. Alec hadn't cried in front of his mother in years but here he sat, his face buried in her shoulder as he sobbed and she soothed him at ten o'clock on a Monday morning after he told her a secret he'd been keeping from years. 

He stroked his thumb over his ring again. He let the coolness of the gift from Lydia, the whiskey and leather scent of Jace, and the comforting hold of his mother wash over him, fill him from head to toe with calmness. Today, everything was okay. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not a week from then, but today he knew. Today he'd be okay, and that was better than he'd had it in a long, long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a up fuckers I'm back. Sorry for the delay but I've been busy as all hell for the past few weeks. My schedule is calm for a little bit before finals start so expect me to be shining our updates like crazy to keep you satisfied until I'm MIA due to studying. I hope you enjoyed, after long last, finding out what the fuck is going on with Alec. 
> 
> Comment your opinions pls it's late and I'm tired and want to read nice things when I wake up


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Malec

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any grammatical/spelling errors that you find so I can fix them.

Magnus’s phone buzzed obnoxiously on his nightstand and he groaned, trying to keep his eyes focused on his textbook instead of the attention drawing noise of his phone. The call went to voicemail and he continued leafing through the book, jotting down things he deemed important for his exam. His phone started up again, the buzzing a beacon determined to draw his attention. He stayed resolute for about three rings before the need to know what would constitute someone calling him twice became too much and he answered, not even checking who was calling, and flicking the phone onto speaker, hoping to still be able to get some studying in during this conversation. 

“Hello?” he asked, hoping the annoyance in his voice was enough to deter the caller. 

“Magnus!” a happy voice called back, an he found himself grinning despite his annoyance.   
“Biscuit,” he smiled, jotting another point down in his notebook. “Is this important? I was trying to study.” 

“Have you seen Alec?” She asked. 

He hummed, shaking his head even though she couldn't see him. “I was under the impression that he'd been missing for a week. Perhaps I've just gotten good at avoiding straight boys who play with my emotions.” 

Clary sighed. “You're still mad?” 

“Of course I'm still mad,” Magnus scoffed, flipping the page of his textbook more forcefully than necessary. “I was practically in love with him for months, months Clary, and he just kisses me and takes it back like it was nothing.” 

“You miss him.” she said. 

Magnus sighed, leaning back on his pillows. “Of course I do.” 

“Well,” he could almost hear her smile in the sudden change in her tone. “I have some good news pertaining to mister Lightwood.” 

“Did he fall off a cliff?” Magnus hummed, jotting down something else in his book, although he wasn't fully paying attention anymore. 

“Magnus!” Clary scolded, and he laughed. It was his first real, honest laugh in the past week. “That's not what this is!” 

“Well, get on with it,” Magnus prompted. “The suspense is killing me.” 

“He's gay.” Clary said it like the sentence didn't completely change his life. 

He turned his attention fully to the conversation. “What?” 

“Yeah?” Clary laughed lightly. “I got dragged to some family dinner with Jace and he just, came out. Apparently his mom already knew, but he wanted to make the announcement anyways.” 

Magnus hummed, lost for words. “What about Lydia?” 

“Lydia likes girls. They were only pretending to date to keep people off their backs.” ahe explained. 

“That explains so much,” He mused, a small smile growing on his lips. “I suppose I'll have to forgive him now.” 

Clary laughed. “You've been wanting to forgive him since the day you decided you were mad at him.” 

Magnus laughed too. “I suppose you're right,” he mused. A light tapping sounded at his window and he was suddenly reminded of a night two months ago. A night of ice cream and getting no sleep. He smiled at the thought, and the tapping sounded again. “Something seems to have come up. I'll talk to you tomorrow, biscuit.” 

“Alright,” Clary said. “Night, Mags.” 

“Goodnight darling.” he ended the call, throwing his phone back down on his nightstand. 

It was becoming a trend for Magnus to hear insistent tapping on his bedroom window while he was trying to do his school work. Usually it was Raphael throwing things to get his attention when he forgot to unlock the front door. Tonight, however, when he moved to the window to grumble at his friend for negatively affecting his grades and interrupting what was growing to be a very interesting phone conversation, he didn't find Raphael. Instead, he found Alec Lightwood standing under the window with a bright grin.

“What the hell?” Magnus whisper yelled down at him. He hadn't heard from Alec in a week and this was how he let him know he was alive? 

Alec simply grinned. “Come down!” 

“You're crazy.” Magnus responded, but he slipped his shoes on anyways. He moved downstairs quietly, careful not to wake his parents. He intended to go outside, give him a piece of his mind for leaving him hanging like that for so long, for playing with emotions the way he did, for lying to him for so long about his relationship with Lydia. He was hurt, he would never try to invalidate that. He wanted to be mad, to yell and scream and make a scene because Alec had hurt him. All thoughts of doing so, however, melted from his brain as he closed the door and turned around, finally seeing the face he'd been missing oh so much for the past week up close. 

He all but ran over, practically throwing himself at the boy. He wrapped his arms tightly around his neck, laughing as Alec picked him up and spun him slightly. “I missed you.” He mumbled into his neck. 

“I missed you too.” He whispered back. 

Magnus pulled back, grinning up at his friend. “Is you throwing rocks at my window going to become our thing?” 

“Would you like it to be our thing?” Alec asked, his hands sliding around his waist and settling on his back. 

“I don't think my parents will appreciate that being our thing.” He mused, throwing his arms around his neck again. 

“What they don't know won't hurt them.” He grinned. 

“My my,” Magnus teased, twirling some of Alec's hair around his finger. “What happened to my oh so responsible Alexander?” 

“I buried him in the yard.” He shrugged. 

Magnus looked at him for a second, watching as his grin grew, and laughed. He buried his head in his chest, breathing in his familiar scent of hard candy and fabric softener. “I missed you so much, Alexander. Don't do that to me again.” 

“I'm sorry,” Alec mumbled, his face buried in Magnus’s hair. There was sure to be leftover glitter stuck to his cheeks when they pulled away, but he didn't make any move to pull away, so he kept holding on. “I didn't mean to be away for so long.” 

“Where were you?” he asked, tightening his arms around him. 

Alec tightened his arms as well. “I needed to figure some stuff out.” 

Magnus pulled away slightly, keeping his arms loosely around his neck. “Did you figure it all out?” 

Alec grinned, and shook his head. “Not all of it. But I did figure out the most important thing.” 

“And what might that be?” Magnus asked, the corners of his mouth turning up into a smile. 

Alec didn't answer him. Instead, he leaned closer, slotting their lips together slowly. Magnus pulled back, looking him in the eye. There was no hesitation in his eyes, no sign that he didn't want this, so he seized forward quickly and crashed their mouths together. He pulled Alec down slightly to meet him halfway, practically grinning as the boy pulled him closer. He slid one hand down his neck and cupped his cheek, holding him steady as they kissed. Eventually the need for air became too much and he pulled back, grinning at the flushed face of the other. He brushed his thumb lightly over his cheekbone.   
“You've got glitter on your face.” He mumbled.   
Alec grinned. “Worth it.” He mumbled, and pulled Magnus closer to kiss him again. 

They kiss wasn't a coordinated as the others, and it was broken into fragments as neither boy could stop grinning. Magnus didn't quite know what had gotten into Alexander, but he was more than happy to let this continue. 

“It’s cold out here,” Magnus said, his words muffled against the others lips. “Come upstairs.” 

It wasn't a question, it was more like a demand, but Alec nodded anyways, although he hesitated. “Your parents-" 

“Will understand.” Magnus promised him. He kissed him again, this time lightly, and ran his fingers through the short part of his hair. He would love to get used to this feeling. 

“Okay,” Alec mumbled against him, kissing him again. “Lead the way.” 

Magnus grabbed his hand, pulling him over to the front door. He placed his finger against his lips in a motion telling him to be silent, and Alec smiled at him in return. He opened the door slowly, pulling Alec inside and closing it just as slowly behind him. Alec looked around as he locked it, and Magnus was suddenly reminded that he'd never been to his house before. He shook the thought away, grabbing Alec's hand again and practically dragging him up the stairs. He heard him laugh lightly and Magnus shushed him even though he knew his parents wouldn't hear. They made it to his room in one piece and he closed the door, instantly turning back to Alec and grabbing his face, pulling him down quickly to kiss him. 

Alec hummed against his lips, his arms finding their way to his waist again, and he pulled him closer, deepening the kiss. Magnus was the one who broke it, letting his forehead rest against the other boys. “Do your parents know where you are?” 

“Izzy’s covering for me,” Alec shrugged. “I figured this was important enough to enlist her help.” 

Magnus laughed, pulling away from him fully and kicking off his shoes, watching as Alec did the same and carefully set them down next to the door. He threw himself down on his bed, rolling to the side and moving his books to the floor beside it, morning for Alec to join him. He sat down near him gently and Magnus scoffed, throwing his arms around him and dragging him down onto the bed. He laid his head down on his chest, playing with the buttons of his shirt, and smiled as Alec carded his fingers through his hair. He leaned over and flicked off his lamp, making sure his phone was charging, and cuddled back into Alec's side. 

“We have a lot to talk about.” Alec commented. 

Magnus hummed. “We do.” 

Alec yawned, throwing his hand over his mouth. He hummed, pulling Magnus closer to him, and he happily obliged. “We'll talk about it in the morning.”

They should probably talk about it now, but Alec leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips and Magnus decided that he wasn't going to complain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It happened! They've risen! I know Magnus’s feeling towards Alec changed a lot throughout this chapter but they're gonna have a good heart to heart soon, don't worry. ALSO! To those who commented about the Magnus/Will tag, the original chapter with that got deleted and I've just decided to cut that plot line entirely as the way this is going currently makes a lot more sense. Also, completely unrelated to this fic, but hmu with your favourite dress shops cause ya girl is desperate. 
> 
> Comment your opinions pls I'm depressed


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